5/02/2004

World War II Veterans Now Remembered


It rained all day. That didn't stop a lot of people from showing up at the World War II Monument that opened Friday. My friend Andrew read an article that said they were planning on having the "soft opening" earlier in the month. According to Andrew they postponed the soft opening because the monument wasn't yet handicap accessible. Being that the youngest WWII veterans are now about 74 years old, many of them use wheelchairs. The informant also mentioned that 1000 WWII vets die everyday. He said something about how once someone brought up the death statistics the project seemed to go faster.

5/01/2004

Watching the Watchers


My friend Seana from class asked if I was interested in freelance work. I went with her today. We helped make a Paralyzed Veterans of America television commercial. This photo is one of the gentelemen from the PVA going over his lines for the commercial. Thank you Seana ... what a unique opportunity.

4/30/2004

Cast from the Past


This is Dave Smooth (aka "Nose Ring Dave") with Rick "Rude" taking a little breather from the crowd at tonight's Fine Art Photo opening. Their nick names may be similar to those of professional wrestlers, but I assure you they are not. Although they do share the wrestling persona. Dave's project consisted of photographs of peoples' scars (one of them mine) and Rick displayed simulated-antiquated Cold War spy document photos (none of them mine). ... Tonight I also enjoyed the Fine Arts and Graphic Design openings. The feeling of the Fine Arts show made me think of exhibits I've seen at the Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh, which is also my favorite museum. I don't count on much these days, but on Thursdays I know I can count on good art and free wine at the Corcoran Gallery.

4/29/2004

Iced Coffee Frappe Steamed Latte Grande


This is Jen. She is my ex-girlfriend. She works at Swing's, the coffee shop I hang out in. My friend Andrew runs the place. He gave her the job after we broke up. (Some friend!) Me and Jen still get along. I am happy that she will soon be officially graduating from Georgetown University. She is really smart with no common sense. She is a really nice person. Almost ... No, everyday I ask her for an iced coffee. Here she is getting me an ices coffee today. Hey, that use to be my skivvy shirt! Weird.

4/28/2004

Looking for Work


I looked for a job today. I am going to check out another lead tomorrow. It seems like things are starting to stand still.

4/26/2004

Error in Judgment


Worst than a man who rides his bike on the sidewalk, I made a terrible judgment error on a paper I turned in over a month ago. To say the least I didn't put the effort into it that I should have. Worse, I have lost self-respect and the respect of my instructor. I haven't got my bike out yet this year because I'm afraid I'll ride it on the sidewalk and become a hypocrite.

4/25/2004

March for Women's Lives 2004


Some organizers say the number of protestors today reached over 1 million. The Metropolitan Police released the more conservative estimate of 800,000 protestors. I went to the Ellipse, the park between the White House and the Washington Monument. There was a picket line that could possibly have reached over a hundred thousand people. It was an amazing site. In the future I imagine they'll have booths set up offering free abortions. I wish they had food vendors too.



March for Abortion Doctors' Jobs


I saw these two abortion doctors marching past the Washington Monument and asked their names. The woman was stand-offish and then just said, "No." I understood why later. It's a touchy thing being an abortion doctor. A lot of folks don't like them. I don't think I could have one as a friend ... It would be weird. Who do they hang out with? Undertakers and embalmers?

Amble to Annapolis


Two schools in Annapolis, the Naval Academy and St. John's had a croquet tournament today. It is a unique annual festival welcoming the summer. They tell me St. John's wins the match every year. Much later tonight I went to the 9:30 Club with some friends but I had a headache and decided to go home. I was expecting to relax but my neighbors are partying. At least they're normal people.




4/24/2004

Sub-Standard Iced Coffee/Reliable Air Conditioning


Today I went with Kat to try the iced-coffee at Caribou Coffee. It's definitely not as good as the coffee at Swing's. It tasted like watery instant coffee, Kat agreed. But, she said Caribou has an awesome air conditioner ... and they did. Kat is from Boston and goes to the Corcoran for fine arts. Behind her in this photo is the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery, formerly the Corcoran Gallery.

4/22/2004

For the Main Course, Heart Burn


These are my friends Maris and Andrew. We went to Haydee's Salvadorian Resturant tonight for some heartburn. I am still burping. My buddy Andrew had to leave the table after a few bites to get some Tums from 7-eleven. We went and saw a show at the 9:30 Club, Sleater-Kinney. They were a pretty rocking girl-band. But there is a big difference between music fueled by testosterone and music fueled by estrogen.

Prize-Packed People


The auditorium was too crowded to fit in by the time I got to the awards ceremony. I waited outside in the warm sunset until the ceremony was over and they opened the doors to the wine and food. My small talk phrase of the night was, "I never won an award ... I don't pride myself on that though." I also made up excuses and special "circumstances" on why I wasn't eligible for any awards. This is Dan Hicks. He won an award excellent enough to strike a Beach Boys pose in the south atrium of the Corcoran Gallery.


Talking Sports


Ross Franklin, Washington Times sports photographer and instructor of my sports photography class, talks about photo placement and the layout of the sports page. To my knowledge, everyone who's ever had a class instructed by Ross has had nothing but good things to say about him. That goes for me too.


Two Different States


This is Ana and Arianne in sports photo class. If you know them at all you know where they're from. Ana is a native Hawaiian and Arianne is a Texan. The symbolism and good character of their states seem to show through in their personalities. As you can see here they are both beautiful people.